


Snowstorms and mistletoes

by I_hate_mages_No_you_dont



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Fluff, Lyriumchristmas, M/M, Mistletoe, Snowstorms, how many tropes can I fit into one prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-24
Updated: 2016-12-24
Packaged: 2018-09-11 16:55:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8999167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_hate_mages_No_you_dont/pseuds/I_hate_mages_No_you_dont
Summary: Last minute decorations for the party at Hawke’s mansion involve a walk through the snow, freezing elf toes and Fenris getting accustomed to Fereldan traditions.(by kittenmage)





	

**Author's Note:**

> last prompt fill for #lyriumchristmas.

“We’re late, mage!”

Fenris tried to make his way through the knee-deep snow, shielding his face against the wind with his hood. He had pulled it down as much as the fabric would allow and he was still able to see the path or rather Anders’ back in front of him.

“As you keep reminding me, Fenris!” Anders’ annoyed sigh was almost drowned by the howling wind that gained even more strength now that they were on the exposed main road back to Kirkwall. _‘We definitely should have gone for the mistletoe a day earlier!’_ But Anders wasn’t foolish enough to voice this thought, because it would only lead to more complaining from Fenris’ side. And apart from that. His clinic had been packed with patients the day before. He had barely found the time to drink or eat in between the steady flow of patient after patient. And “what if” never made a situation better. 

Anders threw a careful look over his shoulder to see the elf struggling to keep Anders’ pace. He tried to tread in Anders’ steps but just couldn’t match the walking pattern of the taller man. In order to do it anyway, Fenris almost jumped from one deep imprint to the next.

 _‘At this rate he’ll be completely exhausted before we reach the city!’_ Anders cursed under his breath. _‘And of course he isn’t wearing any shoes? How foolish can a single elf be?!’_ He immediately tried to take smaller steps. He could at least try to make it easier for Fenris to walk in his track. Hawke would kill him if their warrior lost some toes for last minute Satinalia decorations. And Anders wouldn’t want anything to happen to the prickly elf, anyway. For a moment Anders considered using a minor fire spell to create a path for them. But no matter how much discomfort he was in, Fenris wouldn’t approve. Or so Anders thought.

“Can’t you do something against that? What use is your magic if it can’t help now?!”

The mage stopped dead in his track and turned back towards Fenris. “Did you really just request me to use magic?!” Anders was at a loss of whether to laugh or worry. But Fenris’ pained expression made the choice easy. “I refuse to freeze to death for some Fereldan holiday tradition. No matter how important it is to Hawke!” His knuckles were white, his lips turning a pale blue and Anders didn’t want to imagine the state of Fenris’ feet. He would see soon enough. Because they definitely needed some treatment later.

After a short pause, Anders nodded slightly. “As long as you keep close by and I’ll stop as soon as we’re in sight of the gate, I can try something.” The shivering elf raised a sceptical eyebrow. “Try?” In exasperation Anders gestured for Fenris to come closer. “Yes! Try! Normally I don’t magic my way through snow storms. But I can’t let you wallow in your misery any longer!” He tried a smile but Fenris only response were drawn up shoulders and a frown. “I don’t wallow!” Nevertheless, Fenris stepped closer until he stood next to Anders and waited. Up close it was obvious that Fenris wasn’t just shivering slightly. His mouth was pressed shut in a desperate attempt not to show how cold he was. Which was a futile business as Anders being a healer was trained to look for these signs of cold and unease. He shook his head, before he discarded his own cloak to place it around Fenris’ shoulders.

“Kaffas…”, Fenris muttered, “you’ll freeze mage, I can manage!” At that Anders raised his eyebrows. “Clearly!” He didn’t believe a word and he could see Fenris hunch a bit under his gaze. Then his attention was directed at the path in front of them. The wind drove the falling snow mercilessly in their faces. Normally he liked snow, but this was not the kind of weather to be out and about. This was the weather to huddle close to a fire with a warm drink and maybe a cat or two. And that was exactly where he needed to place Fenris as soon as they were back at Hawke’s mansion.

With a side-glance to Fenris Anders started casting. It was just a minor shield interwoven with a fire spell to block off the wind and heat the air around them a bit. So the elf would regain at least parts of his mobility. Because that was apparently the only thing affected by the cold. His snark was perfectly intact.

“So you’re magic isn’t entirely useless…”

If Anders didn’t need his focus and attention on his spell and their path, he could have sworn that there was a tiny smile playing around the corner of Fenris’ mouth. But that could just as well have been Anders’ imagination. The ice cold hand that closed itself around Anders’ arm wasn’t, though.

They were a lot faster now. The spell wasn’t enough to melt the snow, but without the biting wind, they could almost walk at their normal speed and reached the gate within minutes. Which brought an end to casting magic openly and the icy breeze was back. Anders saw Fenris flinch at the sudden return of the cold. He felt really bad for Fenris. But why in the Maker’s name wouldn’t he just wear shoes!!!

The guard on duty seemed to be uncharacteristically eager to let them through. Their unwillingness to leave the little heated hut close to the door was obvious and apparently they were in no mood to investigate two worn down figures fighting a snow storm on the eve of Satinalia. Anders wouldn’t swear upon it, but he thought he had heard a “Happy Satinalia” from one of the guards, before they entered the small cabin again. That must have been Aveline’s influence. The city guard had been neither nice nor just before the Fereldan woman had taken over as captain of the guard.

The streets of Kirkwall were empty, the snow less thick and various paths wound their way to the entrances of every house. Apart from the hissing wind, everything was quiet. The windows were lit with candles and if not for the cold, the view would have been unusually peaceful for Kirkwall.

“Hurry mage! Give Hawke those leaves and I can get wine and forget all about this trip.”

Fenris was taking the lead now. His steps got faster. Or rather more frantic. Now that they were not walking through deep waves of snow anymore, Anders could see the elf’s feet. And shuddered. They were definitely too pale and blue for his liking.

“Firstly, these are not just leaves, Fenris!” Anders huffed as he caught up with the elf. “Secondly, you’re not going anywhere before I have healed your feet! Don’t even try to refuse!” They had almost reached Hawke’s mansion, which was decorated with even more garlands and lights than the neighbouring houses. Fenris scrunched his nose and was about to say something undoubtedly uncharming, when the door to the mansion swung open and Merrill came running towards them.

“You are back! We were all so worried. You should not have left! How is Fenris? You don’t have a cloak Anders, you must be freezing! Get in!” Their way into the hallway was accompanied by the constant flow of Merrill’s words and Hawke’s Mabari that jumped around them excitedly and tried to lick Fenris’ face. Until Hawke called for him and the big hound let go of the freezing elf.

“I need a big bowl of water! And blankets! And tea!” Anders shouted orders while he grabbed Fenris by the shoulders and tried to manoeuvre him to the fire place in Hawke’s big library. His attempts were met by hissing and some muttered curses but surprisingly little resistance. As neither Merrill nor Hawke seemed to get moving soon, Anders added. “Fenris feet are frozen and if we don’t do something about it now, he might lose his toes.” To be fair, that was a bit overly dramatic, Anders would make sure that Fenris feet stayed just as they were, but it couldn’t hurt to hurry their friends up a bit. 

Anders’ words did the trick. A few minutes later Fenris and he were seated by the fire, Fenris’ feet placed in a bowl of water that Anders continuously heated bit by bit, to thaw Fenris’ numb body. Merrill had brought tea. Hawke a huge fuzzy blanket. Both were now out of the room, helping Leandra and Isabela with decorations in the dining room. And placing the damned mistletoe around the house. Anders didn’t know where they put it, and he didn’t really care. As long as the party would start soon. His stomach was growling hungrily and he was sure, that Fenris could use some food as well.

After a few minutes of thawing and healing in silence, Fenris spoke up. His voice hoarse from the cold, his gaze averted and fixed somewhere at the burning flames. “You risked detection for me…” Anders looked up. He wasn’t sure what to answer. Was Fenris grateful for Anders’ help or was this just another way to pinpoint Anders’ stupidity in prioritizing another’s wellbeing over his own safety? An involuntary sigh left Anders’ lips. “Don’t tell me you want to go back to being stuck in the snow, Fenris!” He added a smile, just for good measure. Fenris just shook his head but said no more. He seemed to be lost in thought. What Anders would give to see into the elf’s head right now and know what crooked ways his thoughts went. And to know if the colour rising to Fenris’ cheeks was just the heat returning to his body or something else.

“I’m done! Mistletoe is everywhere!” A happily smiling Merrill appeared in the doorframe. “And as soon as Fenris can walk again, we’ll have dinner!”

“I can walk!” To stress his point, Fenris stood up in the bowl, nearly splaying all the water over Anders, who was still kneeling beside the elf. “Andraste’s tits, careful elf!” Anders let a quick firespell wash over his soaked cloak but to no avail. He sighed and dumped the wet piece of clothing. “We’ll be there any minute, Merrill. Tell Hawke I need to borrow one of his tunics!” The Dalish elf ran off while the other remained where he was an uncomfortable expression on his face… “I… sorry, mage!”

Ander waved his hands dismissively. “It’s nothing. Just water…” The healer stood up and draped his cloak over a chair. It was warm enough in the room. With any luck it would be dry again before he left for his home later in the night. “Let’s go and get something to eat. Before they place mistletoe all over the table!” He couldn’t keep himself from laughing at the mental image. It reminded him of one of the few good things about the circle. Mistletoe was an exception to the “no kissing”-rule. And not only he and Karl had made use of the Satinalia custom to steal a kiss from another mage or even one of the nicer Templars if you were daring enough.

“What’s it with the mistletoe anyway?!” Fenris stared at Anders as he followed him out of the room. That earned him a chuckle from the mage. “Well, it’s the kissing of course! Or didn’t you have that in Tevinter? Once you meet someone under a mistletoe you have to kiss them.” He laughed and turned. But Fenris seemed to be frozen to the spot, staring after Anders with wide eyes. “Kissing?”

 

Dinner was delicious. And so much not even Anders could try everything that was set before him. This didn’t mean that he didn’t try of course. He felt like exploding, as his gaze fell upon Fenris again. The elf obviously never had heard of mistletoe kisses. And his eyes not so secretly scanned the room for any signs of green before anxiously flitting over Anders once in a while. The sight was terribly amusing. Anders dearly wished to see the elf get a kiss. Not by him. He would never dare to attempt it. He needed his heart. Inside his body, still functioning. Not crushed on the floor.

The first victim of a mistletoe kiss was Isabela. Of course it was her. There was a fairly tiny branch placed close to the fireplace in the dining room. Varric had noticed it as he refilled his glass of sweet wine. The dwarf felt compelled to honour the tradition, went over to the pirate and gallantly kissed Isabela’s hand. “Now that is not how we play this, Varric!” She laughed and bend down to plant a rather noisy kiss on Varric’s lips. His reply was a deep chuckle. “Well, thanks for making the rules clear then!”

The next mistletoe found Hawke. Or rather Merrill found Hawke under one that was strategically placed over his favourite chair. The small elf sat down on his lap and kissed him happily.

There were many kisses. Anders casually avoiding one from Aveline as he noticed early enough that he was under another mistletoe branch when the guard captain came to give him her Satinalia present. Fenris dodged every attempt with meticulous care. And Anders wouldn’t be surprised if the elf hunted down every single mistletoe and burned it in the fireplace ere the night was over.

The party died down close to midnight, after the drunken joy had morphed to a silent, happy drowsiness and Anders saw that as his cue to go home. He walked back to the library to retrieve his coat. It was dry again. _‘Thank the Maker!’_ Anders carefully stashed away the gifts from his friends in his pockets. He hadn’t expected to get so much. His own gifts had mostly been potions, balms, lotions, and something he had knitted. But in return there was a book, fancy ingredients for potions and a new pouch. Somehow Varric had noticed that Anders old one was worn thin by now.

As Anders reached the door to the cellar he heard a faint cough behind him. “You’re leaving already? No more stories of your Warden days in Amaranthine?” Again the hint of a smile played across Fenris’ lips. Which surprised Anders. Because this time he couldn’t explain it as a picture of his own imagination. It was there, plainly in sight. And Fenris was smiling at him! “Eh… yes… I think you might be able to get Varric to tell another of his tales.” Anders turned to open the door, as his eyes met another mistletoe dangling just above his head. “Oh no… mistletoe…”

He spun round on his feet and was met with an extremely confused looking Fenris. “Shall I spare you the embarrassment to kiss a mage and pretend we didn’t see this… or shall we get it over with….” Anders wanted to kiss Fenris. Maker did he want to! But there was no way he would push himself on the elf.

To his great surprise a frown appeared on Fenris’ face after the confusion was apparently brushed away. “I wouldn’t kiss someone on behalf of a plant!” He hissed but came a step closer. If the elf wanted to argue about Fereldan Satinalia traditions now, Anders wasn’t in the mood for that. “Fine…” He was resigned and about to go, when Fenris spoke up again. “I would rather kiss you without the pretence, mage.”

Anders’ eyes doubled in size. “Excuse me… I think I have lost my hearing. I could swear you just said, you want to kiss me.” The soft smile that appeared on Fenris’ lips and made the frown disappear instantly caused Anders’ heart skip a bit. “Well, I generally understood that to be the custom when you like someone. Not kissing everyone randomly. And I like you, mage.”

Anders’ surprise grew and was probably too visible. A slender hand reached out to smooth the wrinkles above Anders’ nose. “You didn’t know?” Fenris whispered now. A sound that pierced right through Anders’ fears and into his heart.

“You’re effectively antagonistic and secretive. How was I supposed to…”

Anders’ explanation was silenced by lips pressing against his. Soft and gentle with a hint of hesitation. His mind went blank and he leaned into the kiss. All of Fenris’ hesitation was gone as his own hands found their way to the back of the elf’s head, messing up the hair and pulling him closer. Deeper into the kiss.

The moment flew by and Fenris drew back slightly. “Clear enough for you, mage?” The soft smile was back, a light twitch in the corner of Fenris’ lips. Anders only hummed in reply. His brain couldn’t process what had just happened. He just knew he wanted to kiss that elf again. Now. So he leaned back in, drawing Fenris closer. “I… mind if I state my point now?”

Anders was met with a short laughter. Before Fenris closed the distance between them for a second time he added. “You talk too much, Anders…”

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Satinalia, everyone! <3


End file.
